You can check in and can’t really check out fast enough. I exaggerate somewhat. Breakfast I met up with George, his wife and Bessy Bluez. The former and latter were both Boot Campers and we had a really nice chat over coffee. Which meant I didn’t really get breakfast.
Meanwhile back in the room I have some work and a Becoming the Artist meeting during which there is a lot of banging, shouting, drilling, hammering and it seems the water went off at some point. I went to reception to enquire if they gave a shit. They didn’t give much of one. ‘Do you want to move rooms?’. Strangely the thought of packing up a day and a half before I am meant to leave wasn’t particularly appealing.
So I end up in the Waffle House next door. Chatting to a barrister called Kyla about music. She wanted to be a opera singer. She gave me a quick burst of Olivia Rodrigo and boy she can sing. She is chatty, engaged, interesting, intelligent and unexpectedly on point politically. A charming interlude. And they have water in the restrooms. They are open 24/7 so I could hang out here indefinitely except there is fast food comfort seating, i.e. hard as arseholes and not built for comfort.
Back to my room for an emergency snooze! Happily, there is now water. Too late to go to dinner so I finish up some snacks with a beer. The work on the floor is still going on, past 11pm. This hotel is truly pretty disastrous. It has an 8.2 average score. I have no idea why. A courtesy call from reception would have made some difference. No wonder they suggested I move rooms.
It’s been a fairly unproductive day when perhaps I could have been travelling though I did a couple of client calls and my Becoming the Artist meeting with a guest speaker who is stage manager for Seasick Steve, Richard. He is interesting and has some good stories and useful knowledge. My own music work hasn’t advanced much. Still looking at finances, for April now. Also, module seven is out for my Radical Songwriting Academy course. Perhaps a quick look at that before bed again.
An interesting footnote later as I start to turn my attention back to the Radical Songwriting Academy and a couple of songs I started at the beginning of the trip I am interested about the bookend of another singer barista. At the end of the trip Kyla, at the beginning Jesse in Schipol. I wonder if the latter will be on shift during my journey home. I have about 7 hours in Amsterdam. Before I turn in I have a look at a second variation of the chorus with the name Kyla instead of Jesse this time.